


First Date

by phoenixquest



Series: Modern mHanders AU [2]
Category: Dragon Age II
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-14
Updated: 2017-02-14
Packaged: 2018-09-24 05:07:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,793
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9704141
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/phoenixquest/pseuds/phoenixquest
Summary: Garrett comes to check out the shelter and have a meeting with Anders about the site he's supposed to design. Anders lost track of time and is a little busier than he expected; the night takes a different turn when Garrett helps give the animals a bath instead. He ends up with a little more than he bargained for.





	

**Author's Note:**

> So, this story was never really "meant" to be continued; I didn't have any solid plans or anything. But you know how things pop into your head. So here's this little extra fluffy piece after "Say Hey". I was inspired by a post compiling tweets about "bad first dates", where one said something about "he insisted we bathe his cat. we did." After reading that, I couldn't get this idea out of my head, so...here we are. I hope you like it!

As Garrett Hawke walked in the door of Paws ‘n’ Claws, Anders’ animal shelter, he was immediately greeted by a cacophony of barking dogs. His next greeting was one of the dogs running right for him, grinning like mad and covered in bubbles.

“Don’t let her out!” came a desperate shout from the next room. 

Just in time, Garrett caught the bouncing dog in his arms, despite her size; the door clicked shut behind him just a moment later. Garrett couldn’t stop laughing, trying to keep hold of the wriggling, soapy dog.

At least he hadn’t worn good clothes.

“Thank goodness,” a blond man sighed in relief, coming around the corner from a back room. “Oh,” he said, eyebrows shooting up as he recognized the now wet and soapy man. “Garrett!”

“Hey,” Garrett replied, grinning at Anders. “Is there somewhere I should set this mess down for you?” 

Anders chuckled, looking weary; he was at least as soaked as the dog.

“Yeah, come on back here,” he said, motioning the man to follow him. “I wasn’t expecting you for a little longer; didn’t we say five?”

“It _is_ five,” Garrett informed him, walking along behind him and doing his best to hold onto the dog, who was now trying to lick his face. 

“What?” Anders asked, glancing at the clock on the wall. “Oh! Dammit, I’m sorry,” he lamented, shaking his head. “I suppose I wasn’t paying attention.”

“No problem,” Garrett grinned, trying to avoid the crazed tongue still trying to get as much of his face as possible. “I don’t mind. Seems like _someone_ was keeping you a little busy.”

“Yes,” Anders said, shaking his head again as he held open a door for Garrett. “We just got her in this morning, and she was completely filthy. My last volunteer had to leave early, but I thought I had it under control,” he added ruefully. The door swung shut behind them both.

“She’s about as big as you are,” Garrett laughed, setting the dog down in the tub on a low table. She was still wriggling in excitement; she seemed liked Garrett very much. “What else was left for her?”

“Ah…she just needs a rinse,” Anders said, rubbing the back of his neck. He was rather red in the face. “I’m really sorry about that. We can uh…reschedule if you want to go home and change. I’ll just get her finished here.”

“Hey, nothing to worry about,” Garrett said, flashing Anders a smile and reaching for the hose. “I think we both need a rinse, so I’ll finish her up. She seems to be alright with being still now, at least,” he added, scratching the dog’s shoulder.

“Don’t let her fool you,” Anders said warningly. “She’s wily. I thought she was fine, and the next thing I knew, she slipped out of my grasp and took off through the door.”

“Might want to get a latch for that one,” Garrett commented, starting to rinse off the dog.

“Yeah,” Anders said with a short laugh. “Um…you really don’t have to do this…”

“Relax,” Garrett said, stopping the flow of water and looking over at Anders with a kind smile. “I promise I don’t mind. Do you have anything dry to change into? You could go clean up, if you wanted. I can handle her.”

“I…actually have one more to do,” Anders said sheepishly. “I didn’t realize how late it was getting, but I’ve got to get this one taken care of…”

“Okay,” Garrett grinned gamely, turning back to the dog to continue rinsing her. “So we’ll finish bathing your shelter and _then_ maybe we can discuss the site a little more. Or go to bed,” he mused, thinking Anders already looked rather tired. 

Anders burst out laughing at that, and Garrett turned to him again, bewildered. 

“What?”

“Go to bed?” he choked out. “Are you propositioning me this quick?”

“What?!” Garrett burst out, mortified. “Oh, god – _no_ , I didn’t mean it like that! You look worn out – I didn’t mean – oh, dammit,” he groaned, considering whether he ought to just drown himself in the tub of water in front of him. The dog continued licking his face, uncaring that he was embarrassed beyond belief.

“It’s okay,” Anders managed, trying to control his laughter. The suggestion had caught him so off-guard that he couldn’t do anything but laugh, but he felt bad. “Don’t worry. I understand.” He let out a last chuckle. “I’m sorry for laughing. Er…well, if you’re okay with it, I _could_ use the help,” Anders admitted.

“Yeah – sure,” Garrett muttered, trying to focus on rinsing the dog and not looking at Anders. “I’ll help. No problem.” He wished the man would just leave for a minute so he could melt into the floor in peace.

“I’ll go get our next spa client ready, then,” Anders said with a grin, and Garrett heard the door swing shut again a minute later. He groaned loudly.

“I’m a mess,” he informed the dog in front of him. She wagged her tail enthusiastically, splashing water everywhere. “Yes, I know,” he added. “You are, too.” He sighed and finished rinsing her, making sure he did a thorough job. 

He was just looking around for a towel when Anders came back in the room.

“Well, she looks much better than she did an hour ago,” Anders said, eyeing the dog critically. “You can tell she has color besides brown.”

“She’s pretty,” Garrett said, admiring her himself. She was some kind of mix of several dogs, with a boxy face, short hair, and brindle coloring. She seemed a little skinny, but not starved, at least. 

Determined not to mention what had just happened, he turned to ask for a towel, only to find Anders already handing him one. The man kept another for himself and both set to drying off the dog, who was thoroughly enjoying the extra rubdown. 

“Did someone give her up?”

“No idea,” Anders said. “My assistant found her by the road this morning; pretty sure she was having a blast in the river, by the looks of her. We’re going to put the word out that we’ve got her, and hopefully someone comes looking. She’s obviously friendly.”

“Clearly,” Garrett chuckled, trying to avoid her happy tongue again. “I’ll ask around.”

“Thanks,” Anders smiled. “I appreciate it. So…how’s the job hunt going?”

Garrett had been looking for a job for the past couple of weeks, almost since he’d first met Anders; between their schedules, this was the first time they’d been able to meet since that first night.

“Not bad,” Garrett said modestly. “I had an interview yesterday that went pretty well. I won’t know for a few days, but…”

“Good luck,” Anders said warmly.

“Thanks,” Garrett smiled, a little shyly. He appreciated the other man caring.

“Alright, girl,” Anders said when they’d finished drying off the dog. “I think you’re good to go. Ready to have some dinner?” In response, she tried to lick his face, and he laughed. “Not _me_ ,” he scolded her playfully. “Come on.” He slipped a rope around her neck as a lead and looked back over at Garrett. “You want the tour?” he asked with a smile.

“Sure,” Garrett said enthusiastically, following the pair back out the door.

“It’s not very big,” Anders said, raising his voice as the sound of barking dogs started up once again. “The dogs are all in this back room, the cats are toward the front. We’ve got about a dozen dogs right now, and five cats.”

“It’s nice,” Garrett said, looking around at the tidy, well-kept areas they passed.

“That’s the vet’s area,” Anders pointed as they passed. “You already saw the grooming area. That’s about it,” he finished, coming to another door and opening it. 

The room they entered was very small, but seemed cozy enough; it had a comfortable-looking dog bed and a plush toy, along with bowls for food and water.

“Where are the other dogs?” Garrett asked curiously. “I thought you said you had about a dozen.”

“We do,” Anders nodded. “She’s still too new; we have to keep her away from them until we know for sure she’s not sick or anything. The vet looked at her today, but I’d rather err on the side of caution.”

“I see,” Garrett nodded; that made sense to him. “It looks like a good setup here.”

“I’m trying,” Anders said, letting the dog off her rope. She went straight to her food bowl, and Garrett gave her a last pat before he and Anders left the room. “I can only do so much, but it helps that we don’t have that many yet…I don’t know what I’ll do when we get more, but I’m doing the best I can for them.”

“Can I help?” Garrett asked.

Anders smiled at him.

“Donations,” Anders said. “Really, that’s what we thrive on. Any shelter, really. Food, beds, treats, toys…anything.”

“I can do that,” Garrett smiled back. “Okay,” he went on, clapping his hands together. “Where’s our next bathtime pal?”

“You sure you’re ready for this?” Anders grinned, walking back down the hall. “This might be more than you bargained for.”

“I like dogs,” Garrett shrugged. “I’m sure it’ll be fine.”

“Well, that’s the trouble,” Anders said, opening another door to the side. Garrett followed him in, finding a room of cages with cats in them. “This one’s not a dog.”

“Oh,” Garrett said, eyes widening. “I…can’t say I’ve ever bathed a cat before.” 

Anders laughed.

“It’s not too bad,” he said. “You just have to know how to handle them. This poor guy,” he added, going to a cage on the far end and pulling it open, “is in rough shape.” A moment later, he was cradling a small, orange tabby cat. Its short fur was matted and tangled, and it looked absolutely terrified. “I don’t know what all he got into, but I heard him meowing outside last night and had to bring him in.”

“Poor thing,” Garrett said, keeping his voice soft; it seemed best not to startle the cat. “So…how do we bathe a cat?”

“Very carefully,” Anders said with a small chuckle. 

They headed back to the grooming area, making sure the door was secure this time, and cleaned it up from the dog’s bath. 

“Grab that soap bottle,” Anders went on, nodding toward the counter while he put the cat into the tub. “Now…if you don’t mind, I think it’ll be best if you do most of the washing,” Anders told Garrett. “I know how to hold him.”

“Sounds good to me,” Garrett shrugged. “Just tell me what to do.”

Anders instructed Garrett through the process, making sure the water stream was gentle and not too warm or cold for the small cat. It was struggling, but Anders wasn’t lying when he said he knew how to hold it; he had the situation well under control.

The cat let out a yowl like it was being murdered the second Garrett directed the spray onto it (carefully, as Anders had advised), and Garrett jumped, immediately moving the water off it and looking horrified. 

Anders chuckled at the look on the man’s face.

“It’s alright,” he assured Garrett. “It’s not hurting him, he just doesn’t like it. He’ll be fine; he doesn’t understand that it’s better this way, but he’ll feel better when he’s not so filthy.”

“Are you _sure_?” Garrett said warily, unsure if he was willing to keep going. “I’ve never heard a cat make a noise like _that_ before.”

“They can be pretty vocal when they don’t like something, yes,” Anders grinned. “But he’s fine, I assure you.” 

Deciding to take Anders at his word, Garrett directed the water back onto the poor cat, wincing when it yowled again, but continuing the process of washing it.

Between the two of them, they managed to get the cat quite clean; its orange fur was rather nice-looking, under the filth that had been coating it. It was also easier to see the poor animal’s ribs.

Garrett wasn’t sure how Anders had been intending to wash the thing on his own; it clearly took two people, and the cat only became more antsy as the bath went on.

“Almost finished,” Anders cooed gently to the cat, attempting to readjust his grip on the now-slippery animal. Garrett couldn’t help but grin; it was adorable, watching the man talk to the cat this way.

The grin soon turned into a gasp of horror, however; while trying to readjust his grip on the cat, Anders had managed to let one hand slip, and that was all it took for the cat to dart for freedom. 

‘Freedom’, unfortunately, was directly up Garrett’s arm.

“Shit!”

“OUCH!”

“Try and grab him!”

“I _am_ trying!”

“Easy, kitty, come on,” Anders said desperately, trying to get the cat off of Garrett, but he was quite insistent on climbing the man. “C’mere, it’s alright, we’re almost done!”

“I don’t think he gives a shit,” Garrett said through gritted teeth, trying to reach up to grab the cat from his shoulder where it had decided to take refuge. His arm was already bleeding rather badly.

“Got him,” Anders said a moment later, getting a grip on the cat. “I’m just going to try to – “

“OW!” Garrett hollered as the cat dug its claws into his shoulder. It was determined it wouldn’t be moved.

“Just – try to hold still,” Anders said, trying to sound calming. “I’ll just get his claws – sorry – there,” he finally exhaled with relief, having pried the animal’s claws out of Garrett’s shoulder. “Come on – let’s rinse him, quickly.”

“Right,” Garrett said, teeth still gritted against the pain in his arm. The scratches were bleeding freely, but he couldn’t very well put away a soapy cat to tend to them. “Okay, you,” he said firmly to the cat as Anders put it back in the tub, “no more of that. A little rinse and you’ll be fine, alright? And I won’t bleed to death.”

“I’m sorry,” Anders said, sounding genuinely contrite even as he kept a tight hold on the cat. “I’ve got some bandages to fix you up as soon as we’re done with him.”

“I’ll be fine,” Garrett said. It hurt, yes, but it was more annoying than anything. “Let’s just finish him up.”

Fortunately, they managed to finish rinsing off the cat with no further incident, and he seemed rather content by the time Anders had wrapped him in a fluffy towel to dry him off. Indeed, once Garrett had emptied the tub and cleaned up somewhat, the cat was purring and mostly dry.

“Where were those bandages you mentioned?” Garrett asked tightly, trying to stem the bleeding on some of the deeper scratches. “I don’t think I want to go home like this.”

“Upstairs,” Anders said, unwrapping the cat and tossing the towel into a corner. “In my apartment. I’ll just put him away on the way up with you, alright?”

“Sure,” Garrett said, shaking his head as he followed Anders. “I guess you were right – that was more than I bargained for.”

Anders let out a chuckle, scratching the purring cat as they walked along.

“I _am_ sorry,” he said. “I hoped he’d be a little better about it. If it makes you feel any better, the vet did check him out today, and he’s healthy enough. No diseases, even if he needs a bit more in the way of regular food.”

“Well, that’s good,” Garrett acknowledged. He didn’t feel a lot better about that – diseased or not, it still hurt a _lot_ – but, he supposed, it was something.

Anders put the cat away quickly before beckoning Garrett through a door he’d just unlocked and up a set of stairs.

“Home sweet home,” Anders said jokingly as they entered what appeared to be his personal dwelling. 

Garrett saw a small kitchen to one side, a small living area, and then a bed partially obscured by a curtain. There was only one other door; Garrett assumed it led to the bathroom.

“You live above the shelter?” Garrett asked as Anders shut the door. 

“There was space,” Anders shrugged. “Cheaper than living somewhere else.”

“Good point,” Garrett conceded. “Well, I think the bleeding’s stopped, at least,” he went on brightly.

“Good,” Anders said, looking a little worried. “We need to get the scratches cleaned up, though, that’s for sure. And ah…just take care of yourself for a few days. Any feeling weird or anything…probably call your doctor.”

“I thought you said he was fine?” Garrett frowned.

“Well, he is, as far as we know,” Anders said sheepishly. “But we can’t know everything for certain, and it’s better to be safe than sorry. I didn’t mean for this to happen,” he lamented. “And here we were just supposed to be meeting about the site. I’m sorry.” He sounded so worried that Garrett had to give him a reassuring smile.

“It’s okay,” he said. “I volunteered, after all. And it’s nothing a little time won’t heal.”

“And some soap and water,” Anders said, shaking his head. “Come on.” He led Garrett over to the kitchen where he helped the man clean his arm off of the blood and soap suds, rolling up his shirt sleeve to access the higher wounds. “Tonight wasn’t at all like you planned, I’m sure.”

“I’ve had worse first dates,” Garrett smirked as Anders’ hand gently ran over his arm, helping rinse him off. 

Anders reddened, but grinned.

“I’m not sure I want to know what could’ve gone worse than _that_ ,” he remarked with a laugh. He reached for a clean towel to let Garrett dry off his arm.

“Perhaps I’ll share my stories sometime,” Garrett laughed. “Do you want to go clean up? You’re just as soaked as I am, now.”

“Yes,” Anders said, trying to stifle a yawn, but Garrett didn’t miss it. “And I have a clean shirt you could wear, too; that one’s a little bloody.”

“A little,” Garrett snorted. “Thanks, Anders. I…do appreciate it.”

“Just sit down for a moment,” Anders said, looking quite pleased and gesturing to a stool by the counter. “I’ll get the antibiotic ointment for those scratches first.”

Garrett watched as Anders went through the door he’d assumed was a bathroom, looking around the rest of the apartment while he waited. 

It was small, but certainly sufficient for just Anders. He wondered if he’d been a little too forward, even jokingly calling this a ‘first date’, but he supposed the fact that Anders still wanted to see him said quite a bit.

“Here you go,” Anders said, coming out of the bathroom and handing the tube to Garrett. “You get those; I’ll get the ones up here,” he added.

Garrett did as he was told, and felt a bit of a tingle where Anders’ fingers touched him. He was so gentle; he had kind hands. His touch seemed to linger a little longer than seemed necessary; perhaps Anders realized it, because he jerked away after a moment, blushing again.

“Er…right. I’ll get you a clean shirt,” he said, hurrying over to the bedroom and disappearing behind the curtain. Garrett had to smile a little; apparently, it wasn’t just him that was affected. He quite liked the blond man, even if the evening had been far from what he planned.

Garrett finished putting the cream on his arm, putting the cap back on the tube as Anders came back to the kitchen, holding a shirt.

“I’m afraid I don’t have any clean bottoms for you,” Anders apologized. “I don’t think you’d fit any of mine.”

“Probably not,” Garrett laughed. He was a good bit stockier than the lanky Anders. “But that’s okay. Thanks,” he added, taking the shirt.

“You, ah, can use the bathroom if you’d like,” Anders offered, pointing. “I’ll be out in a minute.” 

He hurried back behind the curtain, pulling it closed this time, and Garrett frowned a little; had he made the other man uncomfortable? He certainly hoped not; he was being awfully kind. 

Nonetheless, he headed into the bathroom to dry off a bit more and put on the clean shirt. It didn’t fit all that well, but it was better than the soaked and blood-stained one he’d been wearing. He was now even more grateful he hadn’t worn clothes he particularly cared about.

As he headed back out, Anders was pulling the curtain back again, looking a bit fresher in a change of clothes himself.

“That’s better,” he said with a sigh, making Garrett chuckle.

“Definitely,” he agreed.

“Right. So,” Anders said, unable to stifle his yawn this time. “Sorry. Er – shall we get to it, then?”

“What, now?” Garrett asked incredulously. “You’re obviously tired. And have you even had dinner?”

“Well, no,” Anders admitted. “But it’s alright. I already ruined our appointment,” he said with a self-deprecating chuckle. “I can at least make up for it.”

“You didn’t ruin anything,” Garrett said firmly. “Things happen…and, well, even if this wasn’t what I expected, it was an entertaining evening, at least.”

“You have a strange idea of entertainment,” Anders snorted. 

Garrett grinned.

“I got to play with a dog,” he reminded Anders. “Even if she was wet and soapy at the time.”

Anders laughed at that.

“You’re being very nice about all this,” he commented. “You didn’t have to help me at all.”

“I could say the same for you,” Garrett pointed out. “You certainly had no obligation to help me out with those scratches.” 

Anders frowned.

“I wasn’t going to let you go home that way,” he said. “I’m not that rude.”

“I know you aren’t,” Garrett smiled. “I appreciate it; and I didn’t mind helping. Really.”

“Well, thank you, in any case,” Anders said, though he sounded relieved. “Listen, if you’re even still willing to speak to me after this, how about we try again?”

“I think I’d like to heal a bit before another cat-bathing session,” Garrett grinned wryly, and was pleased when Anders laughed.

“Not what I meant,” he said. “Our meeting. I promise, I’ll even meet you somewhere else this time. A restaurant. Dinner, on me?” 

He looked rather more hopeful than one might about a business meeting. 

“A second date it is, then,” Garrett said cheerfully, making Anders blush, though he didn’t object to the wording. “Name the time and place, I’ll be there.”

“Tomorrow, then,” Anders said eagerly. “Let’s try for six this time…anywhere you’d like to go?”

They quickly figured out the details, planning to meet the following evening for their real meeting regarding Anders’ website for the shelter.

And, perhaps, for their second date.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments & kudos are always much loved :D


End file.
